Composite pile connector



1951 A. R. HOLT 03,323

COMPOSITE FILE CONNECTOR Filed Jan. 29, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 R TO RNEYS.

Oct. 10, 1961 A. R. HOLT COMPOSITE PILE CONNECTOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 29,- 1958 1N VEN TOR. l4z7wag frouvnra //047;

ATTORNEYS.

United States Patent Ohio Filed Jan. 29, 1958, Ser. No. 711,879

4 Claims. (Cl. 61-53) This invention relates to composite piles in which the lower section is of wood and the upper section is of metallic pipe which is usually filled with concrete after driving. Such composite piles are commonly used in various types of building construction wherein the wooden pile is driven to the point where its entire length is below the water level in the soil or below water level if the structure is to be built over water. It is necessary in such composite piles to provide a connector or joint to maintain the metallic pile properly aligned with the wood pile so as to resist bending and also so as to resist a tendency to being pulled apart. In some installations here is a tendency for the top pile to rise or float and in the event of a tall building subjected to considerable wind stresses, there is of course a tendency for the composite pile to be pulled apart on the windward side of the building.

The metallic pile is commonly either smooth walled welded steel pipe, usually helically welded, or corrugated pipe. In some instances the corrugated pipe is helically corrugated, and in either case it may have a lock seam.

Connectors for connecting such composite piles are known and they generally involve a wedging of the connector into the material of the wooden pile. The known connectors however have in some cases been very expensive and in others have not performed their function satisfactorily.

It is therefore the principal object of the present invention to provide a pile connector which is extremely simple and inexpensive to manufacture and which has an improved binding or wedging action on the wooden pile so that it resists tensile stresses better than known constructions.

This and other objects of the invention which will be pointed out in more detail hereinafter, or which will be apparent to one skilled in the art upon reading these specifications, I accomplish by that certain construction and arrangement of parts of which I shall now disclose several exemplary embodiments.

Reference is made to the drawings forming a part hereof and in which:

FIGURE 1 is an elevational view partly broken away of one form of a connector according to the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a bottom plan view of the same.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view on a smaller scale as seen from above.

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of the same as seen from below.

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary elevational view of a corrugated top pile with the connector secured thereto.

FIGURES 6, 7 and 8 are elevational views showing the steps in the attachment of a top pile to a bot-tom pile, the top pile in these figures being smooth walled pipe.

FIGURE 9 is a plan view of a modified connector according to the invention.

FIGURE 10 is a cross-sectional view of the same taken on the line 1010 of FIGURE 9.

FIGURE 11 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of the top and bottom pile and a connector wherein the connector is telescoped within the top pile; and

FIGURE 12 is a view similar to FIGURE 11 wherein the connector is telescoped outside the top pile.

Briefly, in the practice of the invention I provide a connector having two elements: a cylindrical ring adapted to be driven into the end of a wood pile or to embrace the wood pile tightly; and a wedging structure comprising two metal plates which may be plain or corrugated and disposed within the ring in the form of chords, neither of which passes through the axis of the ring. When this structure is secured to the end of a metallic pile and driven into the end of a wood pile, the chordal structure compresses the wood within the ring by displacing it so as to produce a very tight wedging action.

In the form of connector shown in FIGURES l to 8 inclusive, a circular plate is welded to the ring, and the plate in turn is welded to the end of a metallic pile. In the form of connector shown in FIGURES 9 to 12 inclusive, the circular plate is omitted and the connector is telescopingly engaged either inside or outside the metallic pile. The chordal plates may of course be flat whereby the structure will be less expensive, but I prefer to use corrugated plates because I am thereby enabled to displace a greater volume of wood and therefore to produce a bet-ter gripping action of the connector with respect to the wooden pile.

Referring now in more detail to the drawings and particularly to the embodiment of FIGURES 1 to 8 inclusive, the connector comprises the plate 10, the ring 11 and the V 12. The ring may be constructed of a single piece of steel with a welded seam at 11a. The V 12 may be constituted of a single piece of steel bent centrally or it may be constituted of two separate pieces. In FIGURES 2 and 4, it is shown as being a piece of corrugated steel bent centrally at the apex of one of the corrugations into a generally V or hairpin shape and the member 12 is then welded in position within the ring '11 as at 12a, 12b and 120. If the member 12 is constituted of two separate pieces, the two pieces may be welded to each other and to the ring at 12a.

The composite structure comprising the members 11 and 12 is then welded to the plate 10 by the continuous weld 10a and the tack welds 10b. FIGURES 1 to 4 inclusive show the complete connector. While I do not wish to be limited to specific dimensions a typical connector according to this embodiment may comprise a top plate having an outside diameter of twelve and onehalf inches and a minimum thickness of one-eighth inch. The ring 11 by way of example may be ten inches outside diameter, three-sixteenths inch thick and five and one-half inches deep. The member 12 may be constituted of a single piece of eight gauge corrugated metal eighteen and one-half inches long and folded at its center or of two similar pieces, each nine and one-fourth inches long, and having a depth of five and one-half inches.

By way of simplification, the weld 11a may be combined with the weld 12a so that the adjacent ends of the ring -11 may be welded to each other and to the apex of the V (or to the two plates if the V is of two pieces) in the same operation, as clearly appears in FIGURE 2.

In use, assuming a wooden pile to have been driven approximately to the position shown in FIGURE 6 and a device according to FIGURES 1 to 4 inclusive having been welded to the bottom of the steel pile 14 at 13 (FIG. 5), the steel pile with the connector attached is positioned over the wood pile as seen in FIGURE 6. The steel pile is then driven so that the connector penetrates the end of the wood pile as seen in FIGURE 7. The composite pile may then be driven further to the extent desired as shown in FIGURE 8. Depending upon specifications, the steel pile may be plain or corrugated. The corrugations may be normal to the axis of the pipe as shown in FIGURE 5 or they may be helical. The pipe may be provided with a helical seam or a straight seam and the pipe pile may later be filled with concrete. These factors are not involved in the present invention which relates solely to the connector between a tubular steel pile and a solid wooden pile.

member 12 is that more metal is to ed the wood it the r so that m was]. sn ases' and very tight engagement between the connector and the wooden pile is achieved. Direct tensile tests have ind";-

cated that the connection between the ring the wood pile is capable of developing more twenty tons, which represents the load regni red in normal applications. If greater lateral stability'is ,de-

sired, pins may be inserted through top plate to anchorrmore firmly the concrete and wooden columns. Turning now to the embodiment of FIGURES 9 to 12 inclusive, the ring is here indicatedat 21 and the V structure is indicated at 22. It will be observed that the plate 10 has been omitted and in FIGURE 9 I have also illustrated the member 22 as being constituted of two separate pieces welded to each other and to the ring by the single weld 21a. From FIGURE 10 it will be observed that the members 22 are of less depth than the ring 21 and as seen in FIGURES l1 and 12 the connector is secured to'the metallic pile 24 by being telescoped in relation thereto. In FIGURE 11 the connector is telescoped within the metallic pile and in FIGURE 12 it is telescoped outside the metallic pile. The wood pile is indicated at 25 in these figures. It will be understood that if the pile 24 V is of corrugated pipe the end to which thc connector is to be secured is rolled out to cylindrical form so that the connector 21 may be telescoped therewith either inside or outside. The connector is preferably welded to the end of the pile 24 by a weld at point X ('FIG- URES 11 and 12).

In this embodiment the ring 2 1 is preferably of a diameter to substantially fit tightly over the end of the wooden pile although this is not essential. By way of example, the ring 21 may have an outside diameter of twelve and one-half inches and a depth of sir; inches, while the inserts 22 may have a depth of four inches. The member 21 may havea wall thickness of threersixteenth inch and the members 22 may be of eight gauge steel eleven and one? half inches long whereby they will be disposed at a mum angle of 3131, Again it may be pointed out that the members 23 may be of flat steel but the corrugated steel is preferred for the reasons stated above. Since the column of concrete cast inside the pipe in the embodiment of FIGURES 9112 has its tip enclosed in the heavy steel ring 21,'a dowel or pin is not required to provide resistance to lateral movement, as might be the case with the plate type connector of FIGURES 1-8.

It will be clear that minor modifications may be made without departing from the spi'titoi the liny ention and I therefore do not intend to limit myself otherwise :than as set forth in the claims which follow. 1

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A composite pile connector comprising a metallic cylindrical ring and two plates disposed as chords within said ring, said chordal plates meeting at one end of each plate to form the apex of a V with one leg on each side of the center of said ring, and being welded to said ring at said meeting end and said chordal plates also being welded to said ring at their other ends, said plates being o a en t re an the a us 05 aid r and serving to displace the wood of a wood pile so as to Wedge t t gh y W t n ai r 2. A composite pile connectoraccording to :claim 1, wherein said chordal plates are corrugated.

3- compos e p l @QQ WWD cco d n to claim 1, rei a d cy nd c l n con t ut d o a Strip ta e t nt c isd s l m w h t w ds of he strip in u st n a ly utt ng relat on. a d. her in said ,chq d l plate eposed t o m a V Wit n s ring with its apex adjacent said abutting edges and said ape nd a ut g e g s a e w lded to e her. y a n o t nuou w ld- A. compos te p le connec o omp s n s p of corrugat d metal with the o ugat on nning tr n v r e y o t leng h, a d be on t e cre of a cen corr ga ion into a \l-, .a met i cy in ica r se. of a dep h substantia ly equal o. t e width at s d st p, ai V being disposed within, Said ring. with one limb of said V on either side of the axis f ring, the limb of said V being of a length greater than the radius'of said ring, said V being welded to. said ring at its apex at the ends .of its limbs, and a circular plate welded to said ring and to said y, said strip of corrugated metal serving to displace the wood of a wood pile. so as to wedge it tightly within said ring. 

